Cheap Upgrade: Big Star

[version sound]

I've been lurking on the Steve Hoffman forums lately and there was a thread comparing the sound quality of the various versions of the Big Star CDs (and vinyl), and they claimed that the German Line 2-fer pressing from the '80s was the best of the bunch for the first two LPs. I've owned pretty much every version of these on CD, but I figured I'd give these a shot anyway. The verdict: I think those nerds are right. The Line version is less compressed, more clear, and smoother sounding than the other versions. I got mine for $10 shipped on eBay. If you grab a copy, make sure that the CD has all 24 tracks. Apparently, the earliest version lists all 24, but only contains 22.